Home Stagers Need Paying Clients, Not Guinea Pigs

Imagine this scenario. A new hair dresser opens a salon. Walking by, you spot a sandwich board offering "Free Haircuts." The owner is standing near the sign and approaches you, saying she´s new at this and would like to give you a free cut and color for practice.

Chances are, you wouldn´t jump at the chance to be a guinea pig in this situation.

Now imagine this.

The same salon has opened up and you walk by. Instead of a sandwich board offering free haircuts, there´s a lineup of women standing out front. Looking at the sign, you realize you´ve heard of this new salon before. You read an article about it in the paper and heard a co-worker raving about it after getting a great new haircut there.

Before you know it, you´re standing in the lineup waiting to see what the buzz is about (pun intended). After all, if everyone´s talking about it, it must be great.

That salon owner is still fresh out beauty school. However, because you get a completely different first impression, rather than wanting to run away from the "practice" hair cut, you´re willing to pay whatever she´s charging.

If people are unwilling to let a new hair dresser practice on them, what makes home stagers believe that a home seller would be willing to let them practice on their home just because it's free?

"It disturbs me to hear of home stagers working for free," states expert home stager, Debra Gould, The Staging Diva®. "However, many seem to think they have to do their first projects for free to rack up experience. I have written many articles on this topic and I strongly object to working for free in the Staging Diva home staging courses, but this question keeps coming up."

According to Gould, it´s often those stagers offering to do home staging projects for free who will always struggle to get business and much of this comes down to perception.

If you´re giving away your services for free, how good can you be?

"There are many ways to market a business and going around offering to provide home staging for free is not one of them," states The Staging Diva®.

In the Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program, Gould teaches home stagers how to create a buzz for their home staging business, much as this example of a new hair salon. If you can "burst on the scene as a home stager," says Gould, "you&'ll have demand for your business even if you're new in town or your staging company is new."

Gould says, "With marketing techniques that let you burst on the scene, all of a sudden your name will be everywhere and people will be talking about you. When you can create a buzz about your business, you will be miles ahead of your competitors. This will allow you to make yourself one of the pricier home stagers in your town because everyone´s seeking you out, trusting that you really know what you´re doing."

If you´re stuck in the "working for free" rut, look into Course 4 of the Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program to learn how to market your business the right way and get clients flocking to you for your expertise with cash in hand.